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Ian Weeks
Ian Weeks was born in Azamgarth, UP, India. He taught Religious Studies, Political Philosophy and Philosophy of Religion at the University of Melbourne, Yale University (USA), McMaster University (Canada), and Deakin University. He has had a research interest in Jewish and Islamic mysticism. He has published widely in journals, given lectures on Radio National and acted as a judge in the Blake Prize for Religious Art.

Ian also had a long history of contributing to Ecumenical committees across the UCA Synod of VicTas. He passed away last week,

A Memorial Service will be held at Wesley Uniting Church,
100 Yarra Street, Geelong on Friday 27th June at 11.30am.

12 June 2025

‘Even the stones cry out’ for Palestine and Israel

Jesus answered, ‘I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.’ As he came near and saw the city [of Jerusalem], he wept over it saying, ‘If you, even you, had only recognised on this day the things that make for peace. But now they are hidden from your eyes.’ (Luke 19:40-43, NRSVA)

As Christians around the world celebrate Pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit, we hear again the call to envisage a world that deeply honours every member of the human family and God’s creation. The coming of the Holy Spirit proclaims a vision of unity that does not erase our differences or force uniformity. Instead, cultural and linguistic diversity is witnessed and affirmed, and we discover a family resemblance not based on colour, language, ethnicity or race.

In sharing this Pentecost dream of a renewed world, our hearts at this time are heavy as we name the tremendous suffering of our world that is caused when we fail to see the image of God in one another.

We restate our commitment to care for the most marginalised and vulnerable, working for a more just world, sharing resources as our Christian faith holds us to a vision of God’s love that includes all people.

Where there are places of conflict and disaster, the National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA) provides aid and support through our international aid agency, Act for Peace.

In Gaza the situation is more desperate and dangerous by the day. Act for Peace is working with partners on the ground to provide primary health care for women and children, medical care for those injured from shrapnel and by sustained bombardment of schools and hospitals, endure lack of shelter, food, clean water and face infection and malnourishment as every day goes by without humanitarian assistance.

Mr Archie Law AM, Interim CEO Act for Peace:

“The humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza demands immediate action from world leaders. There must be an immediate ceasefire and an end to the killing. Humanitarian agencies must be guaranteed full, safe, and unrestricted access to reach civilians who are in desperate need of food, water, shelter and medical assistance. “

Katie Roxburgh, Programme Officer, Israel & the occupied Palestinian territory at Christian Aid (CAID), about the humanitarian programme being run in Gaza with the support of Act for Peace and NCCA:

“Christian Aid’s local partners in Gaza are deeply rooted in their communities and have been the first responders to this humanitarian crisis and continue to provide lifesaving assistance to communities in need. Our partners have shown incredible strength in what is a horrendous situation on the ground. They are using what is available to them, including local farmers producing fruit and vegetables to distribute to the most vulnerable, rehabilitating destroyed wells for water supply and setting up makeshift classrooms in shelters for children’s education.”

Rev John Gilmore, President of the National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA):

We support the statement of the World Council of Churches (WCC) executive committee on 15 May 2025 that condemns the atrocities being perpetrated in Gaza by the State of Israel, recognizing that the current government is pursuing policies that are not supported by many Israelis.

We cannot sit by any longer. Churches in Australia and the world cannot remain silent in the face of such appalling inhumanity. Together with the WCC executive committee, we call urgently for:

• An immediate and unconditional ceasefire;
• An end to the blockade of Gaza, and to all forms of collective punishment of the population of the territory;
• Immediate and unimpeded humanitarian access to all those in need in Gaza; and
• Coordinated international action to halt the destruction, to provide sufficient humanitarian assistance commensurate with the scale of the need as assessed by the United Nations and independent humanitarian agencies, and to bring perpetrators of crimes under international law to justice.

Beyond Gaza, we are concerned that the policies and actions of the Israeli authorities are posing increasingly grave threats to the Palestinian communities of East Jerusalem and the West Bank, including for the churches and Christian communities of the region. We appeal for equal justice and rights for all people, in Gaza, the West Bank, Jerusalem and throughout the region.

We thank our Australian Government for joining with Canada, New Zealand, Norway and the United Kingdom in committing to sanctions against Israeli Government Ministers. 

With the Patriarchs and heads of churches of the Holy Land we are compelled to speak out against the grave threat of mass displacement. Our hearts are heavy with sorrow over the suffering being endured in the land where Jesus walked.

The Pentecost vision is of a world renewed where all of God’s children are valued, protected, safe and given the opportunity to flourish.

END
Contact: NCCA Secretariat, secretariat@ncca.org.au  Tel. 02 9299 2215

Justice Matters Camp ignites Young Hearts and Minds
(originally published in Sandpiper e-news, 13 June 2025)

An energetic group of 80 students and teachers from ten Sandhurst Catholic secondary colleges gathered in Beechworth last week for the 22nd annual Justice Matters Camp, a fast-paced, 24-hour experience designed to awaken, equip and empower young leaders for justice.

Coordinated by Catholic Education Sandhurst (CESL) in partnership with Caritas Australia and schools, the camp invited students to explore complex social justice issues through the lens of Catholic Social Teaching.

Now more than ever, students, teachers and schools are becoming increasingly engaged, global citizens through robust global education curriculum in schools. The camp aims to empower students to make a difference in their communities and the world.

Kylie Smith, CESL’s Source of Life Curriculum Learning Leader and camp organiser, said the goal was for students to see that justice begins at home. “We want students to know they can be socially conscious people and justice leaders in their own lives, in their own communities,” she said.

After some spirited icebreakers, students dived into a series of elective workshops on topics ranging from First Nations’ justice, refugee support, human trafficking and modern-day slavery, environmental stewardship, and sustainable eating. Kylie’s own workshop on ecological spirituality ended with a tactile meditation using gum nuts and banksia pods. “For many, it was the first time they’d ever touched a banksia pod,” she said. “We invited students to take home the seeds that fell from the banskia pods and plant them in their gardens or in pots as a small but powerful act of hope.”

In a standout experience, students took part in Caritas’ Global Reality Meal, where food was unevenly distributed to simulate global inequality: 20% received a feast, others had a basic meal, and the rest received plain rice. “It wasn’t fair – and that was exactly the point,” said one student. The experience brought home the reality of global food injustice and lit a fire for action.

The day concluded with a quiet and deeply moving Compline Prayer and Meditation and Ignatian Examen led by Kylie. “It’s a time to pause, reflect, and ask: How did I grow today? When did God feel closest?” she said. “It was a beautiful moment of calm after such a full day.”

Day two turned reflection into action. Students explored how to move from charity to justice – beyond awareness to meaningful change – and each school developed a plan to bring the Caritas Turn Debt into Hope campaign to life back home.

The final liturgy sent everyone out with a mission: to be the spark that ignites the flame of justice in their communities.

As Sandhurst Social Justice and Caritas Coordinator, Kerry Stone put it, “It was a joy to work with so many passionate young people. They left fired up, ready to make a difference.”

 

A number of issues emerged over the ANZAC 2025 weekend that shone a spotlight on these concerns.

Melbourne Storm cancelled a welcome to country at its Anzac Day NRL match, leaving Wurundjeri elder Aunty Joy Murphy Wandin, an Aboriginal elder, “broken-hearted”. Auntie Joy said, “We want to rebuild our relationship. We want to make them [realise] that this was wrong, hurtful, deceitful and tokenistic.”

The cancellation came after several people interrupted the Welcome to Country at a Melbourne dawn service when Bunurong elder Mark Brown began his Welcome to Country. Their booing was drowned out by the rest of the crowd, who cheered in protest against the disruption. (Statement from Bunurong Senior Elder Uncle Mark Brown in response to the booing during his Welcome To Country at the ANZAC Day Service here).

At the MCG later in the day, there was then warm applause before and after Wurundjeri man Uncle Colin Hunter junior gave the Welcome to Country.

Noting on ANZAC Day that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have served in every major war involving Australia, from the Boer War to Afghanistan. They have served in the ground, air, sea, and on horseback. Despite restrictions and discrimination, thousands have enlisted and served. Regrettably, there has been a historical erasure of the contributions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander service people in mainstream media.

Some politicians (and others in the community) suggest the Welcome to Country/Acknowledgement of Country is overdone. There is pushback to having the Acknowledgement of Country at the start of meetings and church services. There are political aspirants who say they don’t need to be welcomed to their own country.

As an important side note, Anglican Canon Glenn Loughrey has said that the acknowledgement of country is important but only needs to be done once at a meeting or event, not by every speaker.

It is disappointing to hear in the political debates leading up to the election that there is a conflation of the Referendum ‘no’ on the Voice with other aspects that have not been tested (Truth, Treaty), and a preparedness to abandon all aspects of the Uluru statement. Truth and Treaty are core to the ongoing Yoorrook Commission in Victoria, which will hand down its report in June. 

How will we navigate this going forward, Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples together?

 

 

Message of His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Australia for ANZAC Day

As we journey through a turbulent period, in which our world faces a multitude of challenges and uncertainties, today offers us a valuable opportunity to pause and reflect on the greatness of history that is shaped by courageous and virtuous souls, by those who fight for justice and human dignity rather than seeking the comfort of silence and inaction.

Indeed, such greatness is embodied by the men and women of the ANZACs, who were not merely members of a military force. They were individuals devoted to high ideals, for which they fought with a spirit of self-sacrifice, thousands of kilometres away from their homeland and their families.

As Greeks, we have no excuse to ignore or forget their glorious path, for it is closely intertwined with the recent history of our beloved homeland. From Lemnos to Crete, from the Peloponnese to Macedonia, and beyond, the blood of Australian and New Zealand soldiers mingled with that of our ancestors in common sacrifices for the defence of universal ideals.

Especially for those of us who trace our roots to the great island of Crete, the memory of the ANZACs is sacred. In May 1941, when our island faced the invasion of Nazi Germany, the heroic ANZACs fought valiantly alongside our grandparents—not only for Crete, but for everything that Freedom represents.

We therefore owe them our boundless gratitude, and the least we can do is keep their memory alive, passing their precious legacy on to future generations.

Today, as we bow with reverence before their memory, let us promise that we will not remain merely in words but that we will have as our guiding compass the values they fought for; that we will not remain silent in the face of injustice; that we will not hesitate to defend the weak. And finally, that we will never allow the ANZACs to be forgotten. For the memory of heroes is not just a piece of history; it’s a light that leads us towards the right direction for the future.

Antisemitism and Islamophobia are not the only things rupturing our communities

(published online on 18th January 2025, Sydney Morning Herald)

For the new year, I did something I had never done before. Rather than attend my own Protestant church, I went to a Catholic church on a Sunday morning. With the threats to social cohesion rivalling the cost of living as a defining national issue, I recognised the relative lack of opinion diversity in my own bubble. It was a small thing, but I still felt that I was crossing a line to embrace a different tribe.

 

Victorian Council of Churches statement on ceasefire.16 January 2025

NCCA

Melbourne Anglican

RCOA

Uniting Church in Australia